Page 19 of The Seashell of ’Ohana

“Tyler, we have your favorite—chocolate chip ice cream,” Bridget said. “Let’s go and set the game up.”

“We’ll come with you.” Kate tugged Lee toward the house, giving me space.

And just like that, everything was back to normal … except for me.

Oh, my heart. What was I thinking? What had I been doing, looking away while my child was swimming? I needed to be a better mother because I had to be good enough to make up for the parent he was missing. Later, at home, I would speak to Tyler about his position in the pool, how that might look to others, and why I had practically jumped on him.

I shouldn’t have played ping-pong. I shouldn’t have shared my time with Ian. A punishment and a warning. A reminder that I needed to put my child first above all.

“Abby. Ty is fine.” Ian came closer, extending his arms for a hug, an effort to comfort me. He looked concerned, his towel around his shoulders.

But I didn’t want that comfort. Didn’t need it from him. I stepped back, keeping my distance. I looked away, no longer enticed. It wasn’t his fault, but a part of me blamed him. Mostly I blamed myself.

I shivered and hugged the towel around me. “I appreciate your help. I’m going to get Tyler’s clothes, and I need to change, too.” My voice might have come out flat, but I could blame it on the soggy clothes clinging to my body.

I walked around Ian without a glance, grabbed the duffel bag, and headed inside.

Chapter Seven — Safe at Home

I knew I was overreacting, and I didn’t mean to be rude to Ian. After all, he’d rushed ahead and pulled Tyler out of the water. I was grateful—but also mad at myself for being distracted. Watching over Tyler at the pool was my responsibility.

I didn’t have to watch him like I had when he was younger, but kids his age still drowned. Freak accidents could happen.

After I changed, I joined everyone in the living room and watched the game on the large screen. Pirates with scarves tied around their heads and waving swords ran across the ship’s deck to fight the sword-wielding skeletons. The clanking of weapons echoed through the indoor house speakers surrounding us. I felt like I was watching a movie in a theater.

The skeletons jumped aboard from rafts on a rocky ocean and pushed the treasure chest onto it. The lifelike pirates had to slay the skeletons before taking their wealth, on this level. The roguish captain, who had deep-set, dark eyes that gave the illusion he was wearing eyeliner, reminded me of Ian.

After a few rounds of Buccaneers versus Skeletons, I told everyone I was tired. Tyler wasn’t happy we left first, but it was time to go home, anyway. I didn’t want to overstay my welcome.

In the car, I explained to Tyler why I had jumped in the pool and why Ian had pulled him out. After Tyler washed up, I tucked him in bed and then grabbed a book I had left on the kitchen counter.

I needed something to help me relax and take my mind off the lingering guilt of being a terrible mother. Okay, so I wasn’t so terrible. I told myself to stop dwelling on what could have been, but the memory of that moment, when I’d thought I’d lost my son, lingered. I never wanted to feel that agony again.

I snuggled under the covers and buttoned the top of my cotton pajama top. Without Steve, the queen-sized bed seemed too big.

Before I flipped my romance novel open, I looked over at the framed photo of Steve and me on the bedside table, next to my cell phone and the angel winged-shaped seashell I’d found on the beach.

It was one of my favorite pictures of the two of us. We’d been in college. Steve had his arm draped around my shoulder as we exchanged loving glances. We had gone out that day with our friends to celebrate his birthday, and one of them had snapped the photo when we hadn’t been paying attention to anything but each other.

Steve’s hair had been slightly longer, then, making him look more like a surfer than a serious business student. One of the reasons why I’d been drawn to him. I tended to find the naughty boy type interesting, probably because I was more of a Mary Jane.

I smiled at the memory. Would Steve and I have gotten married so soon if I hadn’t gotten pregnant? A year later, Tyler had been an infant, and Steve had been hired for a position in New York. A week after that, I’d gotten a job at a gallery in New York. We had been young, with great careers. Life had been so good.

Tap, tap came from my bedroom window. I jerked, my heart thundering. What in the world? Maybe a branch hit the glass? A bird? I ignored it.

Another tap, and another. It sounded like something was hitting the glass.

I jumped out of bed and padded barefoot to the window. I pulled down the plastic blind carefully with my index finger and snuck a peek. The pale crescent moon beamed brighter than the dim, yellow streetlamp. The night was so quiet and peaceful, I wondered if I had imagined the sound.

I jerked back when something whacked the glass in front of my face. That was when I saw my intruder. Kate stood between the white plumeria tree and a clump of pampas grass with a handful of pebbles, her right arm behind her, ready to throw again. I yanked up the blinds and opened the window. A gush of cool air greeted me, and I shivered.

“Hey! What are you doing?” I whispered sharply.

“Getting your attention.”

I frowned. “Have you heard of knocking?”

“I didn’t want to wake up Ty. And I didn’t bring my key.”